


To live in fear

by Kittenskysong



Category: Highlander (Movies), Highlander: The Series, Power Rangers Zeo
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-10
Updated: 2020-10-09
Packaged: 2021-03-08 05:08:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,973
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26920108
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kittenskysong/pseuds/Kittenskysong
Summary: After the death of his family.Tommy Oliver is sent to live with an abusive relative in Seacouver Washington. Where some new friends attempt to rescue him.





	To live in fear

  
Tommy Oliver sat on the couch in the living room of the house where he lived with his parents and little sister. He was bored out of his mind. It was not a usual state he found himself in, being a High School student with an active social life on top of being the Red Ranger and leader of the Power Rangers.

  
His friends were all busy with their families today, though, and the Machine Empire had been mostly silent the last couple of days. All this had left Tommy with more time on his hands than he usually had, hence the boredom.

  
He would have gone to the park and worked out, enjoying the outdoors while he practiced his martial arts. But the rain drumming down on the roof in a steady beat negated that idea. With his car in the shop, he didn’t like the prospect of walking to the Youth Center either.  
Kelsey Oliver, all of six years old, ran into the room from the kitchen. Her right arm was in a blue cast that ran from elbow to the tip of her fingers. She skidded to a stop in front of Tommy and squealed, “Guess what?!”

  
Before Tommy could respond, the child blurted out, “Daddy is coming home early and says we can go to a rest’aunt.” She pronounced restaurant ‘rest aunt’

  
Tommy chuckled. “Its ‘restaurant’ kiddo. You know better than running right now. You want another stress fracture?” He gave her a mock glare and Kelsey pouted. She was tiny, this little sister of his, and really good at pouting.

  
Strangers often mistook her for a toddler, which she hated. Now she scrambled up onto the couch next to Tommy and snuggled up to him. Tommy put a careful arm around her. “Be careful,” his parents were always telling him. Kelsey’s bones broke so easily that a hug could fracture her ribs. She spent most of her six years in various casts, sometimes in the hospital in traction.

  
Her latest cast had been the result of another six-year-old grabbing her arm in excitement. The little boy had meant no harm, Tommy knew, and you could not always expect a six-year-old to be careful.

  
Jack Oliver came in the door five minutes later, shaking out his umbrella and looked at his kids. Tommy, who he and Jesse had adopted after being told there was very little chance they would ever conceive a child, and Kelsey whose conception had been quite the surprise.  
“Tommy,” Jack began and both children finished his sentence with him. “Be careful,” all three said simultaneously.

  
Kelsey dissolved into giggles and Tommy sighed. “Dad, I wish you would stop telling me that. I’m always careful with her. I don’t like Kelsey being hurt anymore than you do.”

  
Jack only shook his head before asking, “Where’s your mom?”

  
Kelsey pointed at the kitchen with her good arm. Jack strode towards the kitchen calling over his shoulder for Tommy to help Kelsey into her coat and put his own on. Fifteen minutes later, the Oliver family pulled out of the garage.

  
Jesse Oliver turned around and gave the two a look. “Best behavior. Kelsey, if anyone thinks your younger than you are, do you remember what to say?”

  
“That I am six and not to yell at them,” the girl repeated. She sat in a car seat required both because of her small size and for the extra cushioning in it.

  
Jesse nodded and turned back to sit in her seat. Tommy was going to ask where they were going, and had in fact opened his mouth to ask which restaurant when his mother yelled, “Jack!” It was the last word Tommy would ever hear from his family.

There was a resounding crash and the world spun in circles. Tommy’s seat belt tightened around him. His mother screamed a loud sheer wordless cry of terror. There are was another crash and the car was rolling.

When it stopped, the only sound was the ticking of the engine. Tommy realized that at some point he had hit his head on something. Dazed, he put his hand to his head and looked at the blood. What had happened? What the fuck had happened?

It took him several moments to get out of his seat belt and force the car door open. He staggered to the front of the car. “Mom? Dad?” The sight of his mother hanging half out of the shattered windshield froze him to the spot.

  
Distantly, he heard people yelling. Figures were running down the embankment that the car had rolled down. Someone put an arm around Tommy and pressed something to his forehead. He strained to get to his parents and sister. “No, don’t look,” the woman who was holding him murmured. “Come away now.”

–

Jason Lee Scott was pulling spices out of the cupboard and handing them to his father for their father-son chili. It was the only thing that either of them cooked well. Dr. Mark Scott had sent the last of his psychiatric patients home hours ago, while Jason’s mother Dr. Lisa Scott was home from the hospital where she was a surgeon.

  
It was a rare day when the entire Scott family was together for dinner. Most days, Jason ate at his best friend's house rather than eat alone. Now Lisa watched her son bounce around the kitchen, grabbing ingredients with amusement.

  
When the phone rang, Jason answered it on the second ring. “Scott residence.” For a moment, he wondered if anyone was on the other end. Silence met him, then he heard someone sobbing as if their heart had shattered. “Hello? Who is this?”

  
“Jase, I don’t know what to do.” It was Tommy’s voice, but this was not the strong leader of the Power Rangers. This was a frightened child. “They’re gone Jase. My parents, Kelsey they...” Another sob tore its way down the line.

  
“What do you mean ‘they’re gone?’ Tommy, you’re not making any sense.” Jason felt his heart beginning to pick up speed. Something had happened, something really bad.

  
“Drunk driver. We were going out to eat and a drunk driver... my mum and dad and Kelsey... they...” Tommy began sobbing again.

  
“A drunk driver?” Jason repeated dully, finally realizing what Tommy meant when he said his parents and sister were gone. Jason felt his mother tug on the phone and let her take it.

  
“Where are you?” Lisa spoke softly into the phone and listened. “We’ll be there in fifteen minutes.” She hung up and turned to her son “Get your coat.”

-

Lisa led the way into the emergency room, past the receptionist who buzzed them in with a nod. She paused for a moment, speaking softly to the young woman on the desk.

  
“This way.” She murmured to her husband and son leading them down a corridor to a small room. Tommy sat on the edge of the bed, a bandage on his head.

  
He had been left alone. He looked lost and frightened. Lisa snagged a nurse who was hurrying by. “Stu, the Oliver family... What can you tell me?”

  
The nurse shook his head. “You’d better talk to Joe.” He pointed over Lisa’s shoulder.

  
Dr. Joe Stephenson was the attending physician that evening. He was an older man, nearly sixty years, and had been in charge of the ER for nearly thirty years of that time.

  
He approached the Scott family now. He paused to look in at the teen sitting in the room with his shoulders slumped. “Jason, why don’t you go sit with your friend while I talk to your mother?”

  
Jason nodded, stepping inside the room and Lisa looked at the other doctor. He shook his head indicating that they should step farther away.

“Are Jack and Jessie Oliver both dead?” Lisa asked softly.

  
Joe sighed. “Yes, Jessie had massive head trauma she was DOA. Jack hit the steering wheel with his chest. Fractured his ribs, one of the shards pierced his heart. He died on the table.”

  
Lisa closed her eyes. “And their daughter Kelsey?”

  
Joe closed his eyes for a moment. “She died in the ambulance on the way here. It was a blessing really, the poor kid. She broke nearly every bone in her body. Some in multiple places. She would have been in agony up until she slipped away.” Joe sighed again. “Lisa, I told Tommy his sister died instantly. I thought with all that’s happened, he didn’t need to know how bad it had been for her.”

  
Lisa nodded and walked towards the room. For now, she and Mark would take Tommy home with them. Later, there would be time to find out more permanent arraignments.

–

Tommy didn’t even look up when Jason stepped into the room. It wasn’t until Jason put a hand on his friend's shoulder that it even registered that someone else was in the room with him.

  
“Jason?”

  
“I’m here,” Jason said softly. Suddenly, Tommy was clinging to Jason, his face buried in Jason’s shoulder sobbing. “I am so, so sorry.”

  
“IT’S NOT FAIR!” Tommy managed to get out. “It's not fair.”

  
Jason had no response to that. It wasn’t fair, that was sure. Jack and Jessie Oliver had been like second parents to him. And Kelsey?  
Jason had loved her like she was his own sister. The loss of her cut deep. He felt his own tears spill onto Tommy’s head. Nothing was going to be the same.

–

The next day.

  
Tommy climbed wordlessly out of the back seat of the Scott’s car. He had spent the night in the hospital under observation and had only been released that morning.

  
Now he followed Jason into the house and up to the spare bedroom. “You want a shower?” Jason asked softly.

  
“I supp--” Tommy began and then shrugged. “What am I supposed to wear?”

  
Jason didn’t answer and Tommy felt the tears beginning to come again. It was strange how the grief kept sneaking up to blindside you. “Jason, could you do me a favor?” Tommy spoke softly.

  
“Sure, anything.” Jason blurted.

  
Tommy shut Jason’s bedroom door and summoned his Zeonisers. He removed them and handed them to the other teen. “I can't handle being a Power Ranger right now. I just... tell Zordon I can’t”

  
Jason went to protest and something in Tommy's eyes made him stop. He took the Zeonisers and sighed heavily. “You want me to give them to David?”

  
“If he’s willing. If he’s not... then... I don't know...” Tommy sighed himself. “You know, I think I will take that shower. Do you think you could go across the street and get some of my clothes?"

  
Jason nodded before speaking. "Listen, Tommy... if you want to talk..."

  
"Not now, okay, Jase?" Tommy didn't think he had the energy to talk to anyone about how he felt right at the moment.

-

Three weeks later.

  
Tommy felt like the last three weeks were the longest of his entire life. There had been the funerals and those had taken every ounce of energy he had. Everyone kept telling him how sorry they were. The problem was Tommy didn’t want to hear “sorry.” He wanted his family back.

  
Now there was just the reading of the will to get through. Tommy looked around the room. The only people there were his uncles.  
His mother’s brother John Ross had flown in the day of the funeral while his father’s brother Christopher Oliver had arrived the day before the funerals.

  
Tommy had avoided Chris as much as he could. God, how he hated that man! He was glad he had finally told his parents how Chris had molested him as a kid.

  
After the will was read, Tommy was sure he would never have to see the son of a bitch ever again. After all, his parents would not have made Chris his guardian, not after what Tommy had told them.

  
He couldn’t help but tense, though, when he glanced up and saw Chris staring at him. When no one else was paying attention, the older man would lick his lips and smile. It made Tommy feel like he had when Chris had been his primary babysitter as a little kid.

Finally, Tyler Castle, his parents' lawyer came out and escorted everyone into his office. Tommy only half-listened to what the laster said about the house being sold and the proceeds put into a trust fund for Tommy.

  
He only half-listened to the talk about the family vehicle, which despite what the will said couldn’t be left to anyone. It had been totaled in the crash.

  
“Now onto the matter of guardianship.” The lawyer paused looking over the desk at Tommy. “Jack and Jessie Oliver left the guardianship of their children to Jack’s brother, Chris Oliver.”

  
For a moment, Tommy felt like he had been slapped. He sat staring dumbfounded at Castle. He opened his mouth to protest when a voice seemed to speak from in his mind

  
_They didn’t believe you. Your own parents didn’t believe you. And if they didn’t probably no one else will_

  
Tommy closed his mouth without saying anything. He sat dumbly while the rest of the will was read. Finally, Chris Oliver put a hand on his shoulder. “Come on, you need to pack.”

–

Three days later

  
Tommy placed the last of his clothes in one of the suitcases on his bed and looked around the room at his friends who were helping him. Adam Park, Rocky Dasantos, Tanya Sloan, Katherine Hilliard, and David Trueheart had all come over to help.

  
Jason was there as well. He had been the one to tell the others Tommy was moving. His uncle was taking the teen back to Seacouver, Washington where he lived. Tommy closed the suitcase and looked around, a lone tear trickling from his eye and down his face.

  
“I don’t want to go,” he blurted suddenly. The others looked uncomfortable and at a gesture from Jason, everyone else left. Jason was alone with his best friend. Tommy looked at him. “Ask your parents if I can stay with you guys. I don’t want to go. Uncle Chris, he...”

  
Jason interrupted him. “Yeah, I know. You don’t know him and you feel like you are going to live with a stranger. He's a great guy, Tommy. I mean, he didn’t have to give us those gift cards.”

  
Tommy went silent. Chris had given each of Tommy’s friends a gift card for a local department store. Each card had a hundred dollars on it. He felt his shoulders slump. There was no way Jason would believe him if he tried telling the truth. No way at all.

  
Tommy didn’t understand his uncle or what his agenda was. He had not even touched Tommy, except for a gentle squeeze of the shoulder now and then. It made Tommy nervous not to know what Chris was going to do when they were finally alone.

–

The next afternoon, Seacouver

  
Tommy followed his uncle into a small house in the suburbs. He was still waiting for the other shoe to drop. Part of him was actually beginning to wonder if Chris simply wasn’t interested in molesting him anymore. Tommy wasn’t a little kid after all.

  
“Just set your suitcase down anywhere,” Chris said flatly. Tommy did as he was told and stood looking around the small front room. Chris walked to the window and shut the drapes before turning back to smile, or rather leer at the teen. “I missed you, Tommy.”

  
Tommy swallowed and looked away. Chris crossed the floor and before the teen knew what was happening, Chris had him in his arms and had smashed his mouth down on Tommy’s own. Tommy put his hands up and tried to push. It was like pushing against a rock.  
Chris broke the kiss and smiled. “Did you miss me?”

  
“No,” Tommy pulled and managed to twist free. Chris grabbed him again and trailed a hand down Tommy’s stomach. When he slid his hand into Tommy's pants, the teen whirled, lashing out with a kick that sent the older man flying. “I said ‘no!’”

  
Chris’s face darkened with rage. “You fucking little shit!” he roared and attacked. Tommy managed to block the first few blows, but it soon became apparent that his uncle was the better fighter. He tried to keep up but the blows seemed to come from all directions.  
Tommy’s legs buckled under the onslaught. He felt his consciousness slipping away. He was only semi-conscious when Chris grabbed an arm and dragged him into a bedroom. “Little shit,” Chris growled throwing Tommy onto a bed.

  
Tommy had no more resistance to fight back. When his uncle reached for him again, the teen shut his eyes. “No...” He whispered one final time as Chris reached for his zipper.

-

Hours later

  
Tommy stumbled into the bathroom Chris pointed out to him and staggered to the toilet. Bending over the bowl, he became violently ill. It wasn’t just the fact his uncle had raped him. It was the beating on top of the rape. “If you hadn’t fought me, I would not have had to hurt you,” Chris said from the doorway.

  
Tommy ignored him and rested his head on the toilet seat. After a moment, Chris sighed, walked in, and yanked Tommy up. He helped the teen into a small bedroom. “Your room,” he stated flatly, laying Tommy on the small bed. “Tomorrow, we’ll talk about the house rules. But for now, get some sleep.”

  
As soon as his uncle was gone, Tommy let out a sob, followed by another. He spoke then into the dark room, only partly aware he spoke out loud. “How could they make him my guardian after what I told them? I hate them! I HATE THEM!”


End file.
